Of Ends and Beginnings
by BakaNeko96
Summary: What is an end but a beginning of a new journey? It's been a few years since the victorious end of the promised day-but Ed still has his automail and alchemy. Not to mention he's now ambassador of Amestris and professor at Hogwarts! Chaos is bound to happen with Ed's diminishing patience at his students !Set in the manga-verse of Fullmetal Alchemist and The Goblet of Fire! ENJOY!
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer:** HP and FMA do not and will not ever belong to me no matter how hard I wish to the high heavens. If they did you would get 1 chapter of Ed being a father and Severus Snape would not have died.

It was over. Father was defeated and sent back to the Gate and all the Homunculi were gone. Everyone should have been rejoicing. The Promised Day was over, after all. And yet, in the middle of Central HQ, was a group of people who had fought so hard that day, succeeded on gaining victory, and were not rejoicing one bit.

How could they when Alphonse had yet to come back?

Edward was there, kneeling next to a broken piece of amour. The amour that used to be his little brother. Alphonse had let his soul get taken by the Gate so that his brother could get his right arm back to escape from Father. _You idiot!_ was all Ed could think. Surrounding Ed were those like Ling and Hohenheim-each offering him something to get Al back. He had outright refused Ling's offer of the Philosopher's stone. Hohenheim's suggestion however…

'Edward' he had called, 'Use my life… To get Alphonse back. I have just enough left for one-,'

'You idiot! I can't do that!' Edward roared back, cutting Hohenheim off, 'It's our own fault we lost our bodies! We've said over and _over_ that we wouldn't use other people's lives to get Al back!' he thundered on. Taking in a staggering breath, Edward continued, 'Why should you sacrifice your life anyway?'

'It's because I'm your father.'

Those words hit Ed harder than even Father's blast. Before his son could retaliate Hohenheim ploughed on, 'This isn't about necessity or reason. You two mean more to me than anything. I want you to be happy.' Looking at his eldest son squarely in the eyes, he said, 'You tried to bring Trisha back because you were lonely. What happened to you is partly my fault for leaving you alone… I'm sorry… At least, let me be a father to you in the end.'

By then, Edward was choking back sobs. With tears running down his face, he managed to shout, 'Don't be stupid, you shitty excuse of a father! Don't you _ever_ say that again or I'll kick your ass!'

Edward's father could only stare in surprise as his son talked. Then he let out a faint chuckle as Ed's words finally sunk in, 'You finally called me father, Ed.'

Edward gave his father a half-hearted glare as he furiously wiped of the tears on his cheeks. Looking around, he saw the people whom he had fought with just a few hours ago to defeat the Homunculus in the Flask. All of them were grieving for Al.

_May, _he thought,_ are all those tears for Al? And Ling? You needed the Philosopher's stone to save your clan and become emperor and yet you still offered it up. Colonel, Lieutenant, Teacher, even Donkey Kong and Zampano… The guys from Briggs and Central too…Everyone is waiting for Al…_

Stamping his foot in frustration Edward continued thinking of a way to bring his little brother back. He wouldn't consider giving himself up as equivalent exchange. No. Ed knew only too well the pain of being left alone with no family to help. He could never, ever put Alphonse through that.

Looking around the battlefield once more, Edward took in all the worried faces of his comrades who had stuck with him through thick and thin. Even that Colonel Bastard was wearing a worried expression. Edward glanced down at his mismatched hands-his right was thin and malnourished, his left, muscled and toned.

_That's it!_ Edward exclaimed mentally, as he realized something. _That's the answer! But can I really..? _Shaking his head, Edward's golden eyes hardened in resolve. _Of course I can! I am the youngest State Alchemist in history aren't I? And those guys… None of them has ever told me to give up! This is it Al, _he thought, smiling,_ I'm bringing you back. This time, for good!_

Standing, Ed grabbed hold of a nearby metal rod before asking Mei to move. With a small smile on his face, he began to drag the rod along the ground forming shapes. Everyone else crowded around to see what the young alchemist was trying to do.

'That's a..!' Armstrong gasped as he saw the almost complete transmutation circle Edward had drawn.

Izumi too looked on in shock and slight horror as she saw her apprentice's array, 'Edward! That's a human transmutation circle! What do you think you're doing!? Don't you dare-'

Edward cut her off, 'I'm not going to give myself up,' then louder, he said with a grin, 'This is your lucky day everyone! You are all going to witness the Fullmetal Alchemist's last transmutation!'Before anyone could react, Edward clapped his hands together as if in prayer and placed them on the edge of the circle.

In a flash of blue alchemical light, the Fullmetal Alchemist was gone.

#*#

* * *

Edward opened his eyes to find himself in a white expanse in front of giant stone doors and a sitting outlined white figure that had his left leg.

'Have you come for your brother?' the colorless form, Truth, asked, 'But how will you pull a whole person out..? What is the payment? Will you offer your body?'

The whole time ignoring the Truth, Edward marched towards his Gate, proclaiming, 'The payment's here,' he said, tapping his knuckles on the stone doors, smirking, 'This huge thing should be enough, don't you think so?'

For a brief moment, shock registered on the Truth's face. Then, he said 'The Gate of Truth exists within everyone. That is how everyone can use alchemy…' Standing, the Truth leveled himself with Edward. 'Will you degrade yourself to an ordinary person, unable to use alchemy?'

A sad smile gracing his lips, Edward replied, 'There's nothing degrading about it you know. I have always been an ordinary person.' Remembering Nina, he continued, 'A small person, who couldn't save a small girl who turned into a chimera. Since seeing the Truth or whatever, I've relied too much on it, made too many mistakes.' Facing his Gate, Ed said, '…I've become its puppet even.'

Staring at Edward curiously, the Truth asked him, '…Will you be alright about this?'

Turning to look squarely at the Truth, Ed answered with a grin, 'Even without alchemy, I still have my friends!'

A brief pause then, 'That is correct alchemist!' was Truth's reply with an even bigger grin on his face, 'You have beaten the Truth! Take it all, take ever-! '

Just as the Truth was about to complete his sentence and Edward was going to deconstruct his Gate, red and blue alchemical light appeared, interrupting them.

#*#

* * *

As soon as his son disappeared to the Gate, Hohenheim had dislodged himself from Izumi's shoulders and staggered towards the array that Edward had just used. Taking up the rod and working quickly, he drew another circle over the existing array.

'Hohenheim!' exclaimed Izumi, 'What are you doing!?'

'I'm going to bypass Ed's circle and get to him before he gives anything up.' Was his reply.

'But why?' asked Edward's teacher, 'He's not going to give himself up! Ed's probably already figured out a way to bring Al back without endangering either of their lives.'

There was a brief silence as Hohenheim finished up the last of his array. Looking up to face Izumi, he said, 'No, Edward is not going to give himself up. Instead- as you should have guessed- he's going to give up his Gate. I can't let that happen… Alchemy means a lot to that boy, and even if he is more than willing to give it up for his brother, I want him to be able to learn new things with it… to make this country a better place...'

'And you know that Edward is going to curse you for this!' came back the housewife's answer.

Smiling Hohenheim answered, 'I know. But, I take it as one of the perks of being that boy's father..,'

That was the last time anyone of them saw Van Hohenheim ever again before he disappeared in a flash of alchemical light, not unlike what his son had done earlier…

#*#

* * *

'My, my,' remarked the Truth, his grin falling, 'Seems like we have a _gatecrasher_ here…'

'Nice to meet you again Truth,' replied Hohenheim, stretching and grimacing, 'I'm getting way too old for this kind of travel…'

Somewhat frozen in shock, Edward managed to blurt out, 'Old man?! W-what are you doing here!?'

'_Sigh…_I bypassed the array you drew Ed,' his father explained, pinching the bridge of his nose, 'You are not going to give up your alchemy. Take Al with you and get out of here.'

'B-bu-,' Edward tried to protest, but was cut off by his father. 'Go Edward.' Facing the Truth, he continued, 'Myself and the remnants of my stone. That should be enough for both the boys' ticket out of here whole I think.'

'And what makes you think I am going to accept it?' asked the Truth.

'Because Edward's gate does not match the equivalency. It can be considered both too much and too little. I'm offering my life for Alphonse's and what's left of my stone for their toll back. A life for a life...' replied Hohenheim.

'True. But what will your son think?' facing Ed the Truth continued, 'Hmm, Mr. Alchemist?'

'Of Course Not!' burst Edward as he turned to face his father, 'I thought I told you, we are NOT going to use anyone else's life to get our bodies back!'

'I know, 'said Hohenheim.

'Then why-'

'As I already told you, it's because I'm your father. And I have a feeling that somewhere near in the future your alchemy will be needed very badly.' Hohenheim cut off.

'So what!' Edward shouted back, 'I'll cross the bridge when I come to it! What would Al think anyway? Did you bother asking?!'

His father's face darkened considerably at the mention of Alphonse. 'Edwa-'

'Enough!'Both Edward and his father jumped at the sound of Truth's commanding tone. They had been so caught up in their bickering that they had completely forgotten about the Truth's presence.' Fine, you win Hohenheim,' continued the Truth.

'But I-'

'Quiet, Alchemist!' said the Truth to a protesting Edward, 'A much as I don't appreciate someone who disturbs my dealings with another alchemist, your father does have two points there Edward…'

'I don't care!' argued Edward, 'Alphonse is my little brother. It's our fault that we lost our bodies! We won't involve another person's life in this!'

This time, Truth allowed Edward to rant before saying, 'Indeed, Edward you truly are the person who beat me. Refusing to use the lives of others for your own gain…' Turning o that he could face both the alchemists, he said, 'Hohenheim is right though, you will be needing your alchemy very soon, for a reason that will affect the world for better or worse...'

'There's no way-'

For what seemed the millionth time that day, Edward was cut off,' So here's my decision!' exclaimed Truth.

Edward's eye widened with rage and shock as his gate opened and his father started to deconstruct. 'Stop it!' he screamed as the black tentacle-like arms started to grab hold of him.

'Oh and Mr. Alchemist? To complete the equivalency, I'm taking back your arm. Don't worry though, the automail ports that you used to have will still be in place... ,' said the Truth as Edward felt his arm disintegrating. He couldn't have cared less. All he wanted to do right now was to stop everything. Hell, he wanted to sock the Truth in the face so badly.

'Edward?' called his father

Hohenheim's son could only look desperately at him, begging him to stop the exchange. Returning the expression with a pained smile, Edward's father said;

'Thank you to the both of you for being my sons. I love you.'

For the second time that day, Edward cried. For the last time, his father wished that he could stop those tears.

That was the final time Edward saw his father before being pulled out of their Gates. 'I wonder what the future holds for all of us' said the Truth as he took his place in front of the Gate.

#*#

* * *

After Ed and Al arrived back from the Gate, the entire population of Central was thrown into disarray. Medics went straight to the Elric brothers to patch them up. Alphonse was greeted enthusiastically by Mei and the others. Ling and Lan Fan said their farewells to them before returning to Xing that very day and Edward was faced with explaining Selim Bradley's condition to the Fuhrer's wife. Mustang had his sight restored with Marcoh's Philosopher's Stone. Edward received curious glances and questions-which he so vehemently avoided-about his once again missing arm. All in all, everyone present was kept busy with all the work that needed to be done after the battle.

Only Edward, Alphonse and Izumi noticed that Hohenheim was not there. That night in the hospital, Edward had had to explain to his teacher, his brother and his commanding officer about the events that had taken place in the Gate. Alphonse was on the verge of tears as Ed recounted the events while Mustang asked his subordinate about his future.

'I guess Al and I will have to go Back to Reseembol after this,' answered Ed 'I mean, we've got to tell Winry and Granny the news and have a funeral for the old man-not to mention fixing up my automail...' Ed had to cringe at the thought of bloody murder Winry was sure to give him for wrecking his arm.

'And after that?' asked Mustang.

Taking a deep breath before looking at Al, he said, 'Then, I want to travel for a while before settling down…'

'What I mean is- do you still want to continue on as a State Alchemist?' interjected the Colonel.

Edward looked at his commanding officer in shock. He hadn't thought about that… Looking around the room, he saw the reproachful face of his brother and the death glare of Izumi Curtis. 'I-I'll have to think about it…' came Edward's reply.

'Fine,' replied the Colonel, 'But I expect your answer by tomorrow morning, Fullmetal.' With that, the Colonel walked briskly out of the room.

'Don't you dare, Edward!' warned Izumi as soon as the Colonel was out of sight.

'Teacher?!'

"If you even _think_ about reinstating yourself as a State Alchemist, I will personally disembowel you with a spoon!' threatened Edward's alchemy teacher.

Ed couldn't help but pale at that. Teacher always-_always-_honored her threats._ It's not as if I actually want to continue on as a dog of the military.., _he thought, _But, I still have alchemy…TCH! That bastard of a dad…He just had to go complicate things like this!_ Scratching the back of his head, Edward let out a long sigh. Deciding that postponing was the better choice at the moment, he faced Izumi;

'Umm… I guess I'll have to sleep on it T- Teacher…'squirmed Ed. He broke out in cold sweat at the glare Izumi was giving him.

'Che!' was her reply 'If you don't have a good answer tomorrow Edward…'All the while muttering under her breath about something that sounded like 'Stupid apprentice deserves to be sliced up…' Izumi stormed out of the hospital room slamming the door behind her. Never was there a better example of the phrase Hell Hath No Fury like a Woman Scorned…..

Edward could only slump down in relief as his teacher left the room. Now, he had at least nine hours remaining before Izumi could decide whether to mercilessly disembowel her student or not. Ed was seriously considering flight over fight. Flopping himself on the chair next to his brother's bed, he ran his fingers through his hair before asking his little brother;

'So… Whaddya think Al? Everything's over and done with; you've got your body back and all…'

Alphonse smiled softly at his brother before answering 'Well, it's kind of confusing…' Edward raised an eyebrow at this.'I-it's not that I'm angry at getting my body back or anything brother!' explained Al, 'I guess… I just wanted time to get to know dad a little better…' he said, sighing

'Tch! Dad was being an idiot. I told him that we wanted to solve our problems on our own,' ranted Edward 'But you know… he asked me to keep my alchemy for the good of the future…' Using his remaining hand to push his bangs away from his face, Ed looked at his brother's thin face.

'Hey, Al?' called Edward, 'I still have my alchemy and the war's finally over… This country will need all the help it can get to recover.'

Standing up and stretching, Ed decided 'And so, disembowelment with a spoon it is then, Al… I'll stay on as the Fullmetal Alchemist!'

'Then I have to say good luck, huh brother?' answered Al with a smile.

#*#

* * *

The young Colonel stretched and yawned in exhaustion as he stared at the many stacks of paperwork that still needed to be done. He could finally appreciate how a certain colleague of his would want to incinerate his share of paperwork. He was sorely tempted to do the same. Looking at the wall clock of his office, the golden haired young man cursed. He had worked overtime. Again.

Getting up from his plush chair, Colonel Edward Elric, the Fullmetal Alchemist, made his way out of the room. Having to work after hours for five days in a row was seriously wearing him down. Winry had already threatened him with castration if he didn't manage to work normal hours by the end of the week. He was going to have to talk with Mustang about giving him any more overtime…

Running his automail hand through his hair, Ed reminisced about the past few years that had flew by in a blink of an eye. After the Promised day, it had taken him a few hours and a lot of dodging Izumi's attacks to convince her of his reasons to stay on as a State Alchemist. It didn't help that they were in a hospital either… All those sharp pointy things made really good weapons if you knew how to use them. The experience had added to another of the many reasons why Ed hated hospitals-it could kill you.

Though, Edward had to admit he had it lucky that he got a three year leave-unpaid- before being officially reinstated into the army. He had spent those years helping his brother rehabilitate, doing a little traveling to the west and best of all, proposing to and marrying his childhood friend, Winry- even if his proposal to her was awkward and became something of a joke to those who heard it….He and Winry had settled in a house in Central, so he could commute more easily to and from work. There, they had had a son, Maes Elric. _Such a cute and adorable little_-

Edward stopped himself._ Dang. Give me a photo of my wife and son, let me gush out loud about them in front of General Mustang while telling him to get some kids with Hawkeye already, and I'm going to be another Hughes…_ not that Edward was complaining really. That just gave him another way to annoy his former commanding officer, if nothing.

On the other hand, Alphonse was currently in Xing studying alkahestry with the blessing of Emperor Ling Yao. There were many bets going behind Al's back as to when he and May Chang would finally get together. _It's only a matter of time now,_ thought Edward, smirking,_ those two really look good together…_

Then, a few months after Edward had started as a Colonel; a discovery was made that shocked the higher echelons in the Amestris military (they were the only ones who knew) and shook the very foundations of the young alchemist's life . A man had appeared out of nowhere-literally (Ed was one of the witnesses)-in Fuhrer Grumman's office. The intruder was wearing the weirdest outfit anyone had ever seen. A pointy hat adorned his head and he was clothed in robes-yes _robes_- of purple and orange. Putting the man's horrid taste of fashion aside, he was _ancient._ Ancient enough to have long silver white hair and a matching beard that reached down to his belt-and yet, the old man had youthful twinkly eyes, noted Ed.

The three of them-Mustang included-had jumped out of their skins at the sudden appearance of the strange man. Within moments, Edward had the old man pinned against a wall with the Flame Alchemist pointing his gloved hand at him, ready to snap and send a torrent of flames at the intruder at a moments notice. But the old man did not struggle in the least. Instead, he let out a hearty chuckle and vanished- only to reappear again in the middle of the Fuhrer's office. Then, before anyone could attempt anything else, the man took a stick out of his pocket, said a strange word and everyone in the room was frozen.

Once that was done, the old man promptly introduced himself. 'Well, if you may be so kind to allow me, young boys,' he had said, eyes twinkling 'my name is Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore. You can call me Dumbledore.'

Dumbledore then proceeded to defy logic again by levitating the three swearing men and putting them down on seats he had somehow conjured. What he said after that however, was something that nearly fried the two alchemist's brains.

Magic exists.

So did wizards, witches, unicorns and just about everything mythical in fairy tales apparently. Even more unbelievably, this magic bypassed the law that the entirety of alchemy was based on -equivalent exchange.

One could only imagine how far the jaws of the Flame and Fullmetal alchemists dropped when they heard this. If even possible, their jaws dropped even further when the old wizard showed them real proof of magic by setting fire to a nearby cabinet then extinguishing it _without _causing harm to the piece of furniture. Ever the ones to be skeptics however, both of the State Alchemists had checked all over the old man-when he had unfrozen them- for any transmutation circles. There were none.

_That really gave Mustang a run for his money_ thought Edward. He had remembered how baffled he had felt at that time. If magic really existed and it bypassed Equivalent exchange, then, would he and Al not have had to suffer all those years? Though, if he thought about it, it was because of all those adventures and misadventures that had allowed him to meet everyone he knew and allowed him to be where he was today. Like he always told himself- keep looking forward, right?

On a more diplomatic note, Dumbledore had wanted to make an alliance between Amestris and the wizarding world. The Fuhrer, like the two alchemists present, was wary of these new powers. Thus, it had taken a few months, to reason and convince the other higher ups for Dumbledore and the Minister of Magic, Cornelius Fudge to come up with a somewhat mutual trust with them- negotiations were still on the way but both sides had come to friendly terms. Edward meanwhile, had put in a request to Dumbledore-who had also told them that he was headmaster to Hogwarts school of Witchcraft and Wizardry, a.k.a, house to the biggest library in the wizarding world-to do some research about magic. Mustang, on the other hand was very sore about the amount of paperwork the alliance had meant for him.

'Colonel Elric, sir!'

Private Sheska's voice brought him back to the present. Edward never did get used to the way people now addressed him with respect. It was-well- weird…

'Yes Sheska?' prompted Edward.

'The General would like to see you immediately, sir!' replied the mousy Private.

'Sure. Thanks, Sheska!' he said, while running off to the Flame alchemist's office. If Mustang called him in after hours, it was definitely urgent. _No point in me getting charred,_ he thought.

Once Edward reached his destination, he entered to find that that the General had a visitor.

'Why, hello there Edward,' greeted Professor Dumbledore, 'The General and I were just reacquainting ourselves with the joys of drinking tea. Would you care to join us?'

'Um… sure?' said Edward, 'Oh and good evening General, Dumbledore.'

'And the pipsqueak finally learns some manners,' teased Mustang.

Deciding it would be better to keep his mouth shut in company, Edward walked towards the table they were sitting at. Revenge could always come later.

'You wanted something, General?' asked Edward, his teeth gritted.

'Yup. You have a long term mission ahead of you Fullmetal,' answered Mustang. That stopped Ed short.

'A long-term mission, sir?' Edward managed to choke back, 'Care to elaborate?'

'Professor Dumbledore, would you mind?' requested the Flame Alchemist.

'Of course,' said the headmaster chirpily, 'The request that you made to do some research on our magic finally came through young man. That and I believe you have been chosen as ambassador for your country for a spectacular event which is going to be held this year.'

'A-ambassador?' stuttered Edward. Pigs must be flying out the General's window right now. Who would want Edward of all people as ambassador?

'That's right Fullmetal,' said Mustang as if reading his mind, 'Its going to be a one year stint. Correct me if I'm wrong Professor, but I understand that Colonel Edward here is going to witness an event that has not been held for years in your world, am I right?'

'True,' replied Dumbledore, 'The Triwizard Tournament. I will give you more details about this at a later date. Not only that though, as Headmaster, and one who appreciates new knowledge, I would like you to give an introductory class to alchemy at my school. Your superiors, of course, have already agreed to this.'

Edward was stunned. What was Fuhrer Grumman up to, sending him as both ambassador and teacher? Plus, he had a family to look after!

'Unfortunately, General, I can't just leave my wife and son for a _year_,' said Edward rather testily.

'However, if you do agree to this mission, Fullmetal, you will also get a non- restricted access to the library and the wide experience of all the professors at the school,' reasoned Mustang. _Almost got him, _thought the Flame Alchemist when he saw his young subordinate's gravity defying cowlick twitch, _Now I just need a clincher…_

And a clincher did come in the form of Albus Dumbledore;

'Of course, how airheaded of me to forget!' he exclaimed 'Your family is invited to visit the school any time they wish to do so.'

'F-fine then…' said a defeated Edward, 'But I'll need time to prepare…' _The runt swallows the hook line and sinker,_ smirked Mustang.

'Then it's a deal!' replied a twinkly eyed Dumbledore, 'I will be coming and going in the next few weeks with a list of things and some materials for your stay at Hogwarts. Probably the Minister would want you to participate in the preparation of the tournament, but that will be taken care of later.'

'Yes, sir,' answered Edward.

'Now, I must hurry along. It does not do for one to be late for their own meeting,' said the headmaster before vanishing.

Glaring at his superior, Edward growled out, 'You're going to do the explaining to Winry. I'm not going to get bloodied for this,' as he stormed out of the office.

General Roy mustang flinched at the blonde's words. He had seen how hard Mrs. Elric could throw a wrench. This was not going to end peacefully for him…

Somehow, he had a feeling-no, he was sure- that the year ahead of them was going to be full of surprises….

**A/N: Hope you liked it. More on Ed and Winry's wedding in my other fanfiction- A JOURNEY'S END, A NEW BEGINNING. Please rate and review. * runs to catch a mouse***


	2. Chapter 2

CHAPTER 2

#*#

Harry James Potter couldn't tell if he was either more frustrated or excited.

The excitement of the Quidditch World Cup that was on his mind for weeks came first. Then, it was the frustration of it being disrupted by those damned Death Eaters, followed by the cruelty of the treatment received by the House Elf, Winky by her master-Mr. Crouch- for something she probably didn't do at all. Excitement visited again when the Wizarding World announced of the possibility of a new alliance with a never heard of before country, Amestris, that had its citizens focused on the apparently dead art- Alchemy.

Hermione was probably even more excited than him that an ambassador was coming to Hogwarts- not to mention that the ambassador was someone well known for specializing in alchemy in his country- and was going to give a basic introduction to the art. Harry and Ron were being driven to near insanity by their friend's constant rattling on how beneficial it would be to learn such a long lost 'magic'. The boys were only hoping that the girl would not have another 'Lockhart' with the guy….

Frustration had decided to poke its nose in again after a while. The Weasley's who were already working were giving not so subtle hints that an important event was going to take place this year at school. Mr. Bagman had done something similar too at the Quidditch World Cup. In fact, now that all of them- Harry, Ron, Hermione, the twins, Ginny and the rest of the Weasley family (minus Percy) - were at the train station, the Weasley's who were of age were doing it again;

'I think that I will be seeing you all sooner than you think this year,' said Charlie Weasley as he gave his only sister, Ginny, a hug.

Keenly, his younger brother Fred had asked why. Charlie had only come home after a long stretch of working as a dragon handler for the Quidditch World Cup. The school-going Weasley's were definitely not expecting to see their older brother again for quite a long while.

'You'll see,' replied Charlie 'Just don't tell Percy I mentioned it….it's _"classified information until the ministry sees fit to release it," _after all.'

'Yeah, I sort of wish I was back at Hogwarts this year,' said Bill Weasley, as he looked wistfully at the Hogwarts Express.

'_Why?'_ asked George impatiently.

'You're going to have an interesting year,' said Bill, his eyes twinkling. 'I might even gat some time off to come and watch a bit off…'

'A bit of what?!' said Ron.

To Ron's- and everyone else who were in the dark about this mysterious event- dismay however, the whistle of the Hogwarts Express blew and Mrs. Weasley chivvied them towards the train's doors.

Ron, Fred and George tried their luck one last time to squeeze some information out of their mother as she kissed them goodbye through the train windows. She had only smiled and waved to all of them before Disapparating with her two elder sons as the train left and turned around the first corner.

Somewhat disappointed, Harry, Ron and Hermione walked backed to their compartment. The heavy rain was making it very hard to see out of the windows. Pigwidgeon- how Ginny had such weird naming sense, no one knew- hooted in protest as Ron threw his dress robes over his cage. The midget owl's master then started to grumble about Bagman probably hinting about the same thing during the World Cup- and had almost told them too….

'Shhh!' hushed Hermione, pointing her finger to the next compartment. The two boys looked at the young witch curiously, and looked in the direction their friend was pointing at. They couldn't see anything -but they heard a familiar drawling voice instead;

'….Father actually considered sending me to Durmstrang rather than Hogwarts, you know. He knows the Headmaster, you see. Well, you know his opinion of Dumbledore-that man's such a Mud-Blood lover, letting an ambassador who probably knows next to nothing about_** real**_ magic into his school and all- and Durmstrang does not admit to that sort of riff-raff. But Mother didn't like the idea of me going to school so far away. Father says Durmstrang takes a more sensible line than Hogwarts about the Dark Arts. Durmstrang students actually learn them, not just the defense rubbish we do…..'

Hermione walked towards the compartment door and closed it-effectively blocking out Malfoy's annoying voice.

'So he thinks that Durmstrang suits him better doesn't he?' fumed Hermione, 'I wish he had gone-then we wouldn't have to put up with that idiot.'

'Durmstrang is another wizarding school?' asked Harry.

'Yes,' sniffed Hermione as she proceeded to explain to her friends about the other wizarding schools that existed around the world. As she talked, the rain pounded relentlessly outside, making the windows steamy and the lanterns brighter. A while later, the food trolley came and the boys promptly went to get some food. Several of their friends came in and out of the carriage to discuss about the Cup. Occasionally, one of them brought up the ambassador coming from Amestris. The boys could only watch as some of the girls who came talking about the ambassador started to swoon over how handsome he might be…

'Bloody hell,' said Ron- his face turning green, 'It's like Lockhart all over again!'Harry could only nod.

Neville- a round-faced, extremely forgetful boy-, who had come in just a while ago, listened jealously as the others relived the Cup match.

'Gran didn't want to go,' he said miserably. 'Wouldn't buy tickets. It sounded amazing, though.'

'It was,' said Ron, pulling out the miniature figure of Victor Krum.

'Oh, wow,' said Neville enviously as Ron gave him the figurine.

'We saw him right up close as well,' gloated Ron, 'We were in the Top Box-'

'For the first and last time in your life, Weasley.'

Draco Malfoy had appeared in the doorway. Behind him, as usual were his goons- cum- gorillas-Crabbe and Goyle. Evidently they had eavesdropped on the conversation through the compartment door, which Dean and Seamus had left ajar.

'Don't remember asking you to join in,' Harry coolly answered.

Ignoring Harry, Malfoy looked around the compartment and caught sight of Ron's roes over Pigwidgeon's cage. Of course, the Slytherin couldn't resist the chance of bullying a Gryffindor-especially one who was friends with Potter. Grabbing and waving he robes around, Malfoy began taunting Ron, enticing guffaws from his cronies and protests from Ron. As Ron finally got the ancient dress robes back, Malfoy snidely said;

'So, going to enter Weasley? Going to try and bring a bit of glory to the family name? There's money involved as well, you know… you'd be able to afford some decent robes if you won…'

'What are you talking about?' snapped Ron.

'You don't know?' Malfoy smirked, 'This event's going to be even bigger than that alien ambassador coming'. The Slytherin then did the very same thing the people around the trio had been doing all summer- hinting about the evasive event that was going to happen in school this year. Taunting gleefully at the people in the compartment, he continued on before leaving the three in a very annoyed state.

Undeniably Ron's mood for the rest of the train ride was foul. He didn't talk much at all when they changed into their robes or trudged through the rain-while trying to avoid Peeves- into the school carriages. With a great lurch, the vehicles pulled forward at a steady pace towards Hogwarts…

#*#

Roy Mustang was sitting in his very comfortable chair in his office, cursing about the amount of paperwork he had to do- nothing unusual there, unless you count the icepack on his swollen head. Leaning back, the Flame Alchemist sighed as he rubbed the part of his scalp where it had connected with the wrench belonging to Edward's wife. It was a frightening thing- though he would never admit it to Fullmetal- to have a wife that would mercilessly hit you on he head with a wrench when you did something wrong…he was starting to grow a newfound respect for the runt- being able to put up with it and all.

As predicted by Colonel Elric, his wife was completely enraged to discover her husband was to go on a yearlong mission to God-knows-where. Mustang was left to bear her wrath while Edward was fetching their son home from school that day. Even if Winry did cool down a little when the General told her she was free to visit with the rest of the family-Al and Granny included- it didn't stop her from giving a concussion with the heaviest wrench she could find. Edward was not spared either when he had walked in the house with Maes.

A few minutes of shouting -and avoiding wrenches- later, everyone had calmed down enough to explain what had happened in the past few months properly to Winry-and for her to listen. She was shocked at first but she managed to swallow the news a bit more easily when Edward promised he would play it safe while he was in the Wizarding World. However, she had outright laughed when she heard her husband was going to teach-if anything, she knew her husband had next to no patience.

Embarrassed, Edward had pulled his son towards him and buried his face in the young boy's shirt. It was amusing to see the Fullmetal Alchemist doing that, to say the least. Bewildered, the boy had asked his daddy what was wrong while patting Edward's head. Ed had looked up to see the cute face of his son and started swooning over the five-year-old…

Mustang had snickered seeing the mini replica of his young subordinate comfort his father-though he turned a shade of sickly green when Edward had transformed into his own version of Maes Hughes…

When they had finally left the house-with Winry threatening Mustang with possible torture if her husband was harmed in any way during his mission- the Colonel and General had made it back to Central HQ to finalize the acceptance of the mission.

As the weeks passed, the Fullmetal Alchemist received letters along with book and things he would need while he was in the Wizarding World from Dumbledore. The Headmaster had also included a thorough description on the upcoming Triwizard Tournament. All in all, the preparations were going smoothly- until he read about the old wizard's achievement in their so called alchemy…

Three days before the school term was due to start, Dumbledore had popped in to make sure everything was going as planned only to have Edward almost pulverize the old man when he had found out about the Philosopher's Stone in their world and his involvement in it. It took Dumbledore a good two hours before Ed calmed down and listened to the Headmaster's explanation about how the Stone was made purely of magical energy and not human souls.

It took a week to clear up the mess that was made in the Colonel's office…

On a much lighter note, Dumbledore- being one to forgive and forget- had later shown a very sheepish Edward and his ex-commanding officer how he would be arriving at Hogwarts with a port key along with Mustang-who was only going there for a little while and a few more times afterwards to collect mission reports. Ed was nauseous when he tried the port key the first time, while the General had vomited. Heh, another piece of blackmail, Ed had thought. After that little incident, Dumbledore had given them a tour of Hogwarts- undoubtedly; both of the alchemists' jaws refused to close when they saw the sheer size and the mystical things of Hogwarts- before he introduced them to the staff. A Severus Snape was particularly intriguing to Edward (he made a mental note to get to know the Potions master later).

The Headmaster then showed them the rooms which Edward was going to use during his stay at the school- an office adjoined to a simply adorned bedroom and classroom. As the day came to a close Dumbledore sent the two men home before telling them to pack and be ready to leave in three days(since Fudge insisted that the foreigners were to arrive on the first day of the new term not before-though no one could figure out why…).

'And don't be late for the Port key…' the Headmaster had warned.

Thus, the Fullmetal Alchemist had packed in a flurry the things he would need for his mission- books, automail maintenance kit, pictures of his family and the likes. As promised, he was ready in three days. It was time for him to leave and say goodbye. Winry had hit him weakly with a wrench, saying that she and Maes were going to miss him. Edward had hugged and kissed them both and said his farewells-promising to write and to take care of himself and his automail. He started missing them as soon as he walked out of the house.

At the general's office, Ed had allowed himself to look out of the window towards the direction of his home, before steeling himself and nodding at Mustang, as the men placed their fingers on the port key.

They felt a tug behind their navels, and in the next instant, were gone.

#*#

Most of the students in Hogwarts were famished. Being stuck in the rain while being pelted with balloons by Peeves the poltergeist was something anyone in their right minds would not appreciate. The Sorting on the other hand, had seemed to take forever before the start of term feast finally began.

Ron, Harry and Hermione were chatting excitedly about the year ahead of them-Hermione in particular would not stop chattering about the ambassador coming. Though, all of that stopped abruptly when said witch discovered of the existence of House-Elves in Hogwarts…neither of he boys could do anything when she decided to stop eating her dinner in protest of the apparent slave labor.

Soon after, however, when all the food had been demolished, and the plates cleared, Albus Dumbledore rose to his feet again. All the chattering ceased almost as once as the students all turned to pay attention to their Headmaster.

Dumbledore began his speech in his normal, peculiar way-along with the annual warnings of discipline from the school's caretaker, Filch. All seemed well until;

'It is also my painful duty to inform you that the inter-house Quidditch Cup will not be taking place this year.'

This statement from the Headmaster brought rounds of protests from the students-some, were shocked speechless.

Dumbledore continued, 'This is due to an event that would be starting in October, and continuing throughout the school year, taking up most of the teachers' time and energy- but I am sure you will all enjoy it immensely. I have great pleasure n announcing that this year at Hogwarts-'

But at that moment, the doors of the Great Hall were slammed opened, much to the shock of everyone.

A man stood in the doorway, leaning upon a staff. Slowly, he limped towards the professors' table, his footsteps making an uneven noise. As he got closer to Harry, the boy looked in half-terror and half-awe at the man's horribly scar-ridden face. What really caught Harry's attention however, were the man's eyes; one was beady and dark, the other an electric blue-which was relentlessly whizzing all around in his eye socket.

That certainly was new…

When the man finally reached Dumbledore, the two shook hands, whispered an exchange and the stranger sat down to eat. The Headmaster turned towards his students and announced;

'May I introduce you to the new Defense against the Dark Arts teacher, Professor Moody.'

It wasn't surprising that the new professor got next to no applause.

Dumbledore cleared his throat again.

'As I was saying-,

BANG!

For the second time that hour, the doors of the Great Hall were slammed open again.

#*#

The Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry was worried-very, very worried.

The men from Amestris should have arrived a few minutes before the feast started along with Hagrid. But the half-giant had completely forgotten about his escort assignment what with all the commotion caused by Peeves outside, and had returned with a sheepish expression on his face. Now, all he could do was hope for the best- it was a good thing that he gave the two military men a complete tour of the school a few days back- and continue with the speech.

He had not forgotten about Alastor either, but the man was a seasoned auror so he would almost definitely be fine. Dumbledore was proved somewhat right when Moody had burst through the doors quite robustly-though he did scare most of the students along the way…

Then as Albus was just about to deliver the exciting news of the Triwizard Tournament to his students, the doors of the Great Hall were slammed opened once again to reveal two men in blue uniform-one dark haired and the other had long golden blonde hair which was braided- drenched from head to toe.

The Headmaster was going to have to do something about Peeves soon…

The two men however were apparently oblivious to the people in the Hall - were arguing.

'… I told you it was the other way!' said the blonde, 'But you just had to be the oh-so-superior General Bastard and lead us both to that annoying poltergeist.'

'Really!?' retorted the other person. 'Who was it that insisted on going on ahead without waiting for the escort, you runt!?'

'It was raining Mr. I'm Useless in the Rain!'

The dark haired man- for reasons unknown- looked like he was about to clap his hands together. Before he could do so however, the Headmaster cleared his throat.

'Ahem. Mr. Elric, Mr. Mustang, welcome.' Edward and Roy jumped at Dumbledore's voice. They were surprised that they were surrounded by so many people all of a sudden, after walking around and bumping into Peeves, neither of them had seen a single living soul-until now…

Both of them blushed in embarrassment when they realized that they had been arguing openly in front of the entire body of Hogwarts- most of who were staring at them in shocked silence.

'Students,' said Dumbledore. 'Earlier this year, you may have read in the Daily Prophet that the Wizarding World of Britain has managed to establish ties with the elusive country of Amestris and their agreement to send an ambassador to our cherished school.'

The students were now listening intently to their Headmaster- excitement lighting up their eyes, memories of the initial shock of the two fighting earlier rapidly vanishing.

'It has also been agreed that this particular ambassador would be giving the students of Hogwarts an introduction of Alchemy. Therefore, I would like to introduce you to Colonel Edward Elric, the Fullmetal Alchemist!'

With that, the blonde took a step forward and gave a shy grin and a lopsided salute. Applause followed- along with mutterings of curiosity and excitement from the students.

Dumbledore then introduced the other man- a General Roy Mustang, The Flame Alchemist- to the students as Ed's commanding officer for the entire time the Colonel was at Hogwarts-he received applause too. The Headmaster then invited the drenched men to sit up at the High Table, which they did- but not before Edward and Mustang clapped their hands together as if in prayer and placed them against their wet clothes. The students jumped at the sudden blue light that appeared on them both, but stared wonderstruck that, when the light cleared, the two uniformed men were dried.

Hermione looked as if Christmas had come early…

She looked at Ron and Harry and exclaimed, 'That should be impossible-wand less magic! But they-'

The young witch was cut off by Dumbledore's singular clap. The other students were jut as awed as Hermione was at this apparent 'wand less magic' and had started making quite a fuss about it. Harry had to snicker at Malfoy's flabbergasted face, however…

'I understand your need to interrogate the newcomers,' said Dumbledore, addressing the students. Edward blanched at the Headmaster's words while Mustang snickered- the students looked like hungry wolves though…

'Unfortunately, there are more important matters at hand. As I was saying earlier,' he said, smiling as the students' eyes remained transfixed at Roy and Ed, 'we are to have the honor of hosting a very exciting event over the next few months, an event that has not been held over the past century. It is my very great pleasure to inform you that the Triwizard Tournament will be taken place at Hogwarts this year.'

Silence. Then-

'You're joking!' exclaimed Fred Weasley.

'I'm afraid not Mr. Weasley.' said the Headmaster, smiling amidst the laughter the boy had brought. When everyone had calmed down enough for Dumbledore to continue, he explained the intricacies of the upcoming tournament to the students.

Edward and Mustang-who had taken their seats between the Headmaster and Snape- meanwhile, were letting their minds wander. Mustang as usual, took no notice of anything around him, but instead, began plotting ways to avoid paperwork when he got back to Amestris the next day. Edward, however, was observing the little midgets in the hall-he was taller than most of them- which he was going to spend the rest of the year with (The fun he would have torturing them). Some of them looked like pompous brats-Slytherin table- while others…he could always decide later. All he wanted now was to sleep…

Unnoticed by the two alchemists were a few female students drooling at the men's faces- most definitely members to be of a new fan club that was sure to be born soon. Unbeknownst to he young ladies, was the fact that both men were already married to wonderful women- women who were more than capable of dealing bodily harm to those daring to approach their husbands…

'…Bedtime! Chop chop!' Dumbledore's voice brought the two men out of their stupor. As the Amestrians looked around, they saw the students filing quickly out of the Hall- some were still staring at them with curious eyes, three Gryffindors in particular…

Edward looked up at the Headmaster who had just approached him and Mustang. 'Welcome, Edward, Mustang,' he said, 'you must forgive me for not checking that Hagrid had gone and picked you up. But I hope you arrived here safely.'

'It's fine.' Said Mustang 'If anything, we should be apologizing for the ruckus we caused earlier..,'

'Worry not,' replied the Headmaster, 'the students might have been shocked but believe me when I say they will be all over Edward here when he starts his lessons tomorrow.'

Edward flinched at that.

'Well, enough tarrying over here,' continued Dumbledore 'I'm sure you want to rest and I have to talk with Alastor before he gets too excited. Hurry along! You'll find an extra bed in your room for Mustang, Edward.'

And with that, Dumbledore made his way towards Mad-eye Moody while the Amestrians dragged their feet towards Ed's quarters. Nothing much passed between the two men while they made their way to the promise of comfortable beds waiting for them. Reaching the bedroom, the men kicked off their boots, barely registering the luggage that had been brought up for them, and slumped themselves into the folds of the soft, warm beds…

Edward's last thoughts before he succumbed to sleep were those of his family at home…

#*#

Meanwhile, in Gryffindor Tower, Harry, Ron and Hermione were discussing animatedly about the new professor, the Amestrians and the Triwizard Tournament.

Hermione was still intrigued about the possibility of wand less magic and wouldn't stop muttering about it. Harry and Ron were just grateful that their friend had not fallen for Colonel Elric-the same could not be said about the other girls. They were some already considering the possibilities of a Love Potion…

Drowsiness soon took over the trio a little while later. Deciding to talk more tomorrow, they each made off to bed.

As harry changed, he couldn't stop thinking about Cho Chang, a pretty girl in Ravenclaw. Sure, he was till intrigued about the happenings at the feast, but he couldn't stop thinking about her…

Ah, well there's always tomorrow, thought Harry as he was pulled into slumber…

# * #

_Somewhere in the deep alcoves of the Xing castle, a black haired man with slanted eyes was sitting on a chair, reading a newly received letter;_

"…_.. Therefore, in honor of our age old alliance, I invite you to be a judge of the upcoming Triwizard Tournament._

_ Sincerely, Minister of Magic;_

_Cornelius Fudge"_

'_What is it?' a silhouette asked from behind._

'_Nothing much,' replied the man, grinning, 'just a very interesting invitation from the Wizarding World.'_

'_Will you accept, young master?' asked the shadow._

'_Of course.'_

# * #

**A/N; Chapter 2 finally out! Enjoy the product of my tears, sweat and blood! Nyahahahah!**

**P.S; Thank you to Guest for pointing out my mistake in Chap 1.**

**P.P.S; I might have to go on hiatus soon; my finals are coming up… T.T**

**DISCLAIMER; DON'T OWN SO DON'T SUE!**

**BTW; I FINALLY GOT A BETA!**

**RATE AND REVIEW; CONSTRUCTIVE CRITICISM ACCEPTED.**


	3. Chapter 3

**CHAPTER 3**

** #*# **

EdwardElric was going to murder Roy Mustang. A slow and painful death would be fitting for the General all right…

Sure, Ed needed someone to wake him up in the morning- it was a fact anyone who had ever slept in the same room as him knew- he could sleep through just about anything, given the chance. Winry and Alphonse usually woke him up with a lot of noise or a bucket of water- occasionally, his son would jump on him (so cute…)- but no one- NO ONE- ever woke him up by burning his blanket **and **calling him a pipsqueak followed by a douse of water! If his automail got rusted, he was going to blame that Bastard. It took him plenty of patience and restrain so as not to rush through the halls of Hogwarts to find that General Bastard and just alchemize him to the school's enchanted ceiling…

Edward couldn't run, so he stalked- in full Amestrian military regalia and gloves- towards the Great Hall with a heavy aura of dark energy surrounding him. Students who were already awake- which thankfully, were very few- stared at the ambassador with frightened eyes, then- deciding to take the wisest course of action- ran. Looking up at the High Table, Ed spotted his temporary commanding officer flirti- wait…what?! Oho!

General Roy Mustang, The Flame Alchemist and husband to Risa Hawkeye, was FLIRTING to Professor Pomona Sprout. Blackmail material if anything… yep, this was turning into one lucky day for Edward. If only he could find a camera…

FLASH!

Oh yeah, his lucky day indeed! Edward had spotted a squirt-ahem, student- holding a camera. A Polaroid model no less…

"Hey, kid," said Edward, "you, the one with the camera."

"Y-yes?" stuttered the startled boy. (The ambassador was talking to **him!**)

"Mind if I use the Polaroid a bit?" asked the already smirking Fullmetal Alchemist.

"N-not at a-all!" replied the shaking-he was gonna pee!-student.

Making a grab for the camera, Ed took aim and shot, and then tossed it back to the quivering boy as soon as the photo was produced. Smirking at the result- to hell with that, it was a work of art! - Ed thanked the student and marched gleefully towards the High Table with the enchanted moving photo and sat down smugly between Mustang and Professor Snape.

"Had a nice sun bath and shower this morning, runt?" asked the general looking away from the subject of his flirtations.

"It was wonderful!" replied Edward cheerily. Cheerily-wait, he was supposed to be fuming and making a scene…The Flame Alchemist looked suspiciously at Fullmetal.

"Looks like someone had a great big dose of sunshine this morning..."prodded Mustang somewhat carefully.

"Yup!" Smirked Edward-hey! It was Mustang who was supposed to be smirking -not the pipsqueak! Oh no… this was very, very wrong…

"So, I heard Risa got a new gun," continued Edward.

"And that has something to do with this conversation because?" the General was sweating. No one asked about his wife's armory unless…

"Oh nothing much," replied Ed nonchalantly "just an enchanted moving photo of you flirting with the Herbology teacher…"By then, the blond had the photo out- it showed Mustang smiling coyly at the professor, and when Roy had moved across the table to get some salt, it looked as if he were giving Pomona a peck on the cheek…

…unless someone had something that would warrant Risa wanting to kill him.

"…..," and thus the Flame Alchemist was struck speechless. Edward quickly kept the photo in his pocket then said;

"Call me short again and this goes straight to your wife. Burn it, and a written letter from Professor Sprout and me would be more than enough to ensure your castration, wouldn't it?"

Mustang cursed. He had rubbed off way too much on Edward. Contemplating an early morning battle, Roy took his gloves out (he sill preferred them over the clappy thingie) and was about to pull them on when-

"Good morning, my boys!" said a cheery Dumbledore.

"AAH!" Roy flew and Ed jumped from his chair. Old men coming out from nowhere were decidedly not good for the Amestrian's hearts…

"I hope you're ready for today's lessons, Edward," continued the Headmaster-his eyes twinkling in amusement, "the students seem ready to dissect their new subject Professor."

Ed's eye gave an involuntary twitch. _Those brats won't know what hit them when I'm through with their first lesson,_ he thought.

"Oh, and before I forget, the other Professors have invited you to observe their classes when you have the time," said Dumbledore to Edward, "as for the General, here's a letter for you from a Mrs. Risa Mustang…"

The headmaster handed Roy the letter. He opened it. He read it. He trembled. He ran-or tried to anyway, Roy only managed to knock his chair over but seemed to think better of it, so he righted the chair and sat back down rigidly.

Curious, Edward plucked the letter out from the Flame's stiff hand. Mustang looked too afraid to move and didn't protest. The Fullmetal Alchemist could understand why when he read the closing contents of the ominous letter from Mustang's wife;

…_and I hope you didn't forget that your secretary left you a memo about the backlog of your recent paperwork. Just because I retired from the military doesn't mean I would stop myself from shooting you if you cause any trouble to your subordinates. Also, make sure I don't hear of any tomfoolery from you while you are carrying out your current assignment. Good luck and come back on time._

_Your wife, Risa._

_PS; I just acquired a new rifle yesterday- I'll need to use the practice site to try it out when you come back._

_Classic, _he thought. Edward was glad that Winry only had wrenches to hit him with. He could at least survive the blunt force trauma-but a bullet to the head? Not in a million years…

"That reminds me, weren't you supposed to go back today?" Edward asked Roy.

"Oh yes!" exclaimed Dumbledore who had taken his seat after handing Mustang the letter, "I had almost forgotten! Your port key will be leaving soon, so I suggest you run to my office if you still want to catch-"

Before the Headmaster could finish his sentence however, Mustang had already taken off, leaving a trail of dust in his wake. "Don't forget the photo!" called Edward.

Students who had begun to trickle into the Hall a while ago couldn't help but stare in wonder-and confusion- at the foreigners' antics …

"Here is your timetable Professor Elric," said a very bemused Dumbledore giving Ed a piece of parchment, "I must say- your superior has a very lovely wife…"

"You have no idea, Professor…" Ed said, smirking. Piling his plate high with food, Edward sat back and began devouring his breakfast- at the same time reminding himself to write a letter to Winry (he did not want to end up like the General…)

Meanwhile, the head of Slytherin watched on curiously at the ambassador- he was certainly very _interesting…_

#*#

"AAAARGH!" grumbled a disgruntled Ron.

He had plenty reason to. For the fourth year in the row, the Gryffindor House was stuck with the Slytherins for care of magical Creatures and Potions- not to mention they had double Divination on a Monday of all days….

"Cheer up," said Harry, "we have double Alchemy today at least. It should be interesting."

"Of course it's going to be interesting!" gushed Hermione, "We're getting a chance to learn a long lost art! I mean, we thought only Dumbledore and Flamel knew about this branch of magic!"

"Say that after you stop gabbling about elf rights why don't you?" Ron said. As usual, the red-head had not one ounce of tact in him…

And so, once again Harry was stuck in the middle of a squabble between his two best friends. He was going to stay neutral on this one-things could get really ugly if he took sides. _Then again, things couldn't get much worse_, Harry thought.

Oh, how wrong he was… things were going to go downhill very, very soon.

It started with Herbology. Sure, it was oddly satisfying to squeeze pus out of Bubotubers, but do you have any idea how much of a mess it made on your robes when you become careless? Then, Hagrid just had to breed some kind of creature that was weird even by magical standards. Being burnt and bitten by Blast-Ended Skrewts- which were horrendously ugly and definitely not cute like what Hagrid assumed they were- was no walk in the park for anyone(though it was fun that Draco was hated by those creatures…). Of course, it couldn't end with just the Skrewts. Harry's death was yet again foretold in Divination, not unlike last year- and he was still alive and kicking! And during break, Collin Creevey wouldn't stop going on about the ambassador talking to him and using his camera…it was disgustingly similar to how the girls used to fawn over Lockhart when he was a professor at Hogwarts.

By the time Alchemy class came around, Harry and Ron were ready to throw a temper tantrum. Hermione on the other hand was ready to burst with excitement by the time they reached the Alchemy classroom.

The other students from both Gryffindor and Slytherin who had already lined up outside the classroom were murmuring in all eagerness about t he new class. Even Malfoy looked somewhat curious about it…

"Come in!" a voice drawled suddenly from the room. The fourth years shuffled in obediently- only to discover a room devoid of chairs and tables with the Professor-cum-ambassador sitting cross-legged with one hand resting on his knee and the other supporting his chin at the centre all the while giving the students a –evil? - grin.

That was really weird.

Standing up and stretching, Professor Elric addressed the students, "Welcome to hel-I mean- class, midgets!"

Did he almost say hell? Just what was Alchemy, anyway?!

"For starters," continued the blonde, "you can put away those magic stick thingies. We won't need them." Mutterings of excitement followed the peculiar instruction. Were they really going to learn wandless magic? Excited to find out, they quickly put away their wands.

Seeing his students settled, the Alchemy professor cleared his throat; "Now, who can tell me what alchemy is?'

Surprise, surprise; who was the first(and only)person to raise their hand but Hermione?

Raising an eyebrow at the lack of response, the professor said, "You, over there, um... Miss-"

"Granger, sir," replied Hermione.

"Miss Granger," he said, "so, what's your answer?"

Ignoring the bemused expression of the ambassador's face, Hermione answered;

"Alchemy is a presumably dead magic which aims to create the Philosopher's Stone to grant the user immortality and ways to turn lead into gold." Harry and Ron couldn't help but snicker a little at Hermione's mention of their first year-ah, sweet memories….

"You could say that," nodded the Professor, "but your answer is fundamentally wrong."

Everyone stared in shock. No one had ever been in a class where a professor had ever told _Hermione _hat she was wrong. Even Snape just ignored her- there was no way he could make a completely correct answer wrong. Right now, Hermione looked as if she was going to hyperventilate….

Seemingly oblivious to the stunned silence he had caused, Professor Elric continued.

"First of all, Alchemy is a science, and not magic."

This seemed to wake the students from their earlier shock. How could something that could create a Philosopher's Stone be a Muggle Subject? Was the professor joking?

"Why should we need to learn a Muggle topic anyway?" sneered Malfoy. Oh, boy- Harry could just see a big storm brewing ahead of this class….

The professor however, seemed unperturbed.

"Because you signed up for this class," he said nonchalantly.

Slightly taken aback by the professor's easy answer, Malfoy said, "But I came here to learn a new magic-not Muggle scum!'

"Well, if you are that disgusted," said the professor with an annoyed look on his face, "you are free to leave Mr... ummm..."

"He's Malfoy, sir," prompted a student at the back of the classroom.

"Mr. Malfoy," continued he Alchemist, "same goes for anyone who seems to think that this _Muggle _subject is beneath you."

Draco looked as if he was considering accepting that answer, but he caught a glimpse of the professors' face. His expression was daring him or anyone to walk out of the room just right then. And it was downright scary.

Sensibly, Malfoy sat still.

"Now, where were we?" mumbled Professor Elric, "ah, yes!"

"As I mentioned earlier, alchemy is fundamentally a science-not magic as all of you assumed. The basis of alchemy consists of three parts, understanding, deconstructing and reconstruction," pausing a while he said, " aren't you supposed to be taking down any notes?"

The students stumbled to sit on the floor- which was surprisingly comfortable- and reached for their quills and parchment.

"Right," Professor Elric continued, "understanding means knowing about the object you are going to work with-the more you know, the better. For example, let's say you want to evaporate water. Can anyone tell me what makes up water?"

Looking around, Harry saw that only those who had basic Muggle education-like himself- had any idea of the answer. The others however, seemed completely baffled.

Harry decided to raise his hand.

"Mr…?" aid the professor, pointing at Harry.

"Potter, sir. Water is made up of oxygen and….err….. Hydrogen, I think."

"Correct," smiled- or was it grinned?-the professor. "For those of you, who haven't an inkling of what Potter just said, ask your friends who do know later."

"The next step is to deconstruct the said object- which is to break it apart completely- and then to reconstruct it completely into something else. We'll go into the details later, but basically, it's like breaking down water into its basic elements and putting them back together as a vapour. The whole process is called a 'transmutation'"

The students who had a completely magical education looked harassed. Those who did have a basic science education however, did not have it that easy either. They could barely understand what was going on by now.

"Oh well, I guess it doesn't matter whether you understand yet or not…' sighed the professor looking at their confused faces, 'I'm just giving you midgets a quick run through before we really start.'

Ron and a few others were appalled. A quick run through? This was making their brains hurt even more than Potions did!

"Anyway, I'd like you to know that there's a price for using alchemy-it's not free like your magic," said Professor Elric.

More bafflement showed on the students' faces as the professor smirked at their expressions.

"Calm down! It's not like you have to pay in blood or anything- though it does vary on the situation…"

Neville fainted. The rest in the class paled considerably.

The Professor's composure cracked a little."Someone slap him awake will you?" said the Alchemist between snorts and snickers.

"Sorry, did I scare you guys? I didn't mean it like that. As I said, alchemy is a science, not some sort of black magic cult."

By then Neville had woken up and the students-including Malfoy- gave their rapt attention to the professor.

"The price in alchemy is called the law of Equivalent Exchange- unlike magic; you can't create something out of nothing in alchemy. Simply put, if you want to transmute a spear made of 3 pounds of steel, then you'll need 3 pounds of steel before hand-nothing less."

The class calmed down considerably after the explanation. Harry had almost thought that the professor was in league with Voldermort- though that was kind of stupid considering that Amestris did not know about him in the first place….

"All right then, let's get down to business!"

"First of all, I want all of you to read through the basic books on alchemy I'm going to give you. You don't have to learn anything by heart- basic understanding is enough for now. What you do need to memorize however, will be the periodic table of elements on page 3. But, that will be on a much later date."

Everyone looked relieved that nothing strenuous was given to them. Harry however, noticed an evil glint in the golden eyes of the professor.

"Just to warn you, not everyone will be taking this class after the week is up," said Professor Elric, 'There's a test this weekend to decide who will be taking the this class!"

Uproar of protests came immediately fro the students. Why did they have to go through the test if hey wanted to learn the subject?

"Quiet!" shouted the professor, "if you really want to learn alchemy, you MUST pass the test first."

"But why should we?" retaliated Malfoy, "It's just a subject."

"Really now?" Replied the professor, "alchemy is not something you can just wave your wand and do. It takes practice, patience and complete understanding of all its laws and the way it works."

"So do our other classes!" said Malfoy.

"I know," said the professor in a dark voice. "And I also know that if you make a single mistake in alchemy, things worse than death could happen to you…. I've experienced it first hand."

Some of the students shuddered. It did not seem as if the professor was jesting in any way. Not even the notorious Malfoy answered back at that.

"Now," said the professor in a cheerier voice, "any questions?"

Just the right thing for the professor to say then as the students immediately forgot the dark side the professor had displayed and immediately started bombarding him with question-almost like like hungry wolves hunting a rabbit.

Harry had to laugh at the professor's reaction when the girls ,except Hermione, started to ask him some rather weird questions;

"Are you married yet?"

"Do you want to go out with me?"

A few minutes later, the professor looked as if he was going to bludgeon someone. And he was eyeing Malfoy….

"Alright! Alright! Class dismissed!" shouted the very harassed professor.

It still took the class another 5 minutes to clear out after that…..

"Wonder what the test will be like?" said Hermione flipping through the newly acquired alchemy textbook.

"How would I bloody well know?!" exclaimed Ron- who was already in the throes of depression in anticipation of failing the test.

"Well, shall we go for lunch then?" said Harry, trying to avoid an argument.

"Sure. But I wonder what the professor meant by experiencing a bad mistake first hand?" wondered Hermione.

"Dunno. Let's just ask him next time. I'm famished," said Ron. Food seemed to take his mind of the upcoming test.

Harry smiled as they walked towards the Great Hall. _I wonder what's going to happen next, h_e thought.

#*#

Edward Elric was exhausted. He had had to teach 6 classes today. And almost all of them showed the same amount of respect towards science-next to zero. Not to mention that blasted Malfoy- none of the other classes had an annoying brat that made him want to murder said person so badly. The girls were no better either…

In short, Edward hated his first day as a teacher. At least Izumi wasn't here to give him hell about it….

Then again, the brats didn't know about the kind of test he was going to give them.

Shortly after breakfast that morning, Ed had asked Dumbledore a favour- could the Headmaster be willing to build a space in the forest that did not follow the time flow of the outside world? At first, the headmaster was confused as to the need for such a magical space-that is, until Edward told him the details of what he was going to do with it. The idea was met with protests at first, but after Ed had assured Dumbledore of the students' safety, the Headmaster of Hogwarts agreed heartily, much to the Fullmetal's delight.

Edward Elric was going to give all the students his own version of the Izumi Curtis test and none of them would expect-or particularly like-it. Ed couldn't help chuckling to himself as he walked down the corridors to the main hall.

Hell was definitely awaiting the students of Hogwarts…

#*#

Meanwhile, back in the Gryffindor common room, Harry was feeling very guilty.

He had sent his godfather a letter complaining about the pain he felt from his scar. Now, Sirius was offering to come back from hiding to check on him. Nothing could be done to persuade Harry's godfather otherwise.

He would have to ask Dumbledore for help if it continued. On a somewhat darker note, the fourth year students- and the rest of the school- were quite excited by the lessons Moody had given them. For the first time, Harry had seen what had killed his parents-and almost killed him- the Killing Curse. To be killed by a couple of words and a wave of a wand was frightening. It made killing someone without a conscience too easy- thus the birth of the Death Eaters and probably Voldermort.

On the other hand, Hermione was driving him and Ron crazy with questions about the test;

"Ooh... How are we ever going to learn the concepts in here by tomorrow?" she groaned, "I just know I'm going to fail!"

"Oh, shut it 'Mione!" said Ron. He had practically given up on the test already. After all, if he failed, it would just be one less lesson to learn, right?

Hermione on the other hand, had taken it to herself to memorize the whole textbook from cover to cover-including the periodic table in ascending relative atomic mass. In short, she was driving everyone crazy…

But the test was tomorrow, and little could be done about it now. Harry decided to get a good night's sleep and just do his best during the test. Seamus, Dean and the others thought the same too. And thus, the entire fourth year of Hogwarts fell into a fitful sleep that night in anticipation of the much feared alchemy test.

Little did they know of the horrors they would face when they woke tomorrow….

#*#

"Welcome to the test of your lives, midgets!" Edward was in a good mood that morning. He was going to enjoy torturing all the students today.

He had spent the entirety of the week planning the test out. The pocket dimension Dumbledore had made with the other professors was wonderful. It had been built in the outskirts of the Forbidden Forest, with only a hazy veil distinguishing the barrier between the real world and the other. Inside the dimension was a wood with ponds and lakes-plus some wild-not so magical-beasts in there. The best part-according to Edward-was that the dimension seemed endless even if it only took up a small part of the forest.

Students from the fourth year and above were the only ones taking this test. Younger ones were going to be assigned a much simpler kind of test when school was in session. Ed had built up a timetable in order to see that things were to go smoothly. Students had to go in pairs at different parts of the barrier that would lead them to places far enough from the other groups that the chances of different groups clashing were slim. It would seem to the students that they were spending a fortnight in there, but in reality, it would only be a few hours.

The students- only fourth years Gryffindors and Slytherins now, the others would go in subsequent hours- were presently by Hagrid's cabin with confused expressions awaiting their professor's instructions. Ed snickered again at the thought of their reactions when they found out what this test was about.

"First off, you will be sitting for this test in pairs," said Edward. Hopeful murmurings of the student floated up in the air-they were obviously trying to get their friends to be in the same team. Edward couldn't help but smirk-he seemed to be doing that a lot lately…

"However, I have already chosen your partner for you," he said, "all from different houses."

The noise that followed was enough to bring the whole building down. Ed had to scream at the top of his lungs to get everyone's attention back.

"I don't care if you like it or not!" he shouted, "It's either you take the test with your chosen partner or you go for it alone-understood?!"

Silence followed. The thought of sitting for the test alone when they had a chance to go with a partner was terrifying-and foolish.

"Good," Edward said-grateful for the silence, "now, before I tell you what the test is about, come on up and see who you partner is."

Harry, Ron, Hermione and the rest of their fellow students made their way towards the two long lists suspended in mid-air, wondering with whom they were paired up with. The Gryffindors and Slytherins had been hoping that they weren't paired up together.

Unfortunately, that was the very thing the Fullmetal Alchemist had done.

Harry's eyes grew wide as he saw the name of his partner. It was Draco Malfoy.

"Bloody hell!" Harry heard Ron shout.

"What's wrong?" asked Harry.

"I've got Crabbe!" replied Ron.

"Malfoy," stated Harry.

Ron was speechless. To be paired up with a Slytherin was one thing, but Crabbe and Malfoy?

"What about you 'Mione?" asked a rather subdued Ron, "who do you have?"

"Pansy Parkinson," said a forlorn Hermione.

Meanwhile, Edward was enjoying the show the Gryffindors and Slytherins were putting on. He had heard about their ancient house rivalry from the staff-and he couldn't help putting it to good use.

"If you've got your partner, come and line up in front of me next to them!" called out Edward.

Obediently, the very downhearted students did so. Most of them hated their partners. It was as if the professor did some intensive research on their social lives- which of course he did.

With an evil glint in his eyes, Edward told them, "Now, all of you hand me your magic sticks."

Warily, the students passed their wands towards the front of the line. Putting them in a sack, Ed took out a long case and opened it. From it, Edward took out a few long daggers. The students stared in shock. What in the world were the weapons for?

"Right, here's how the test goes,"he said handing out the daggers to each pair of the surprised students, "I've asked the headmaster to build a pocket dimension over here in the forest. You are to survive in there for a few hours without magic."

All of the students hung their jaws wide. What was the test?! At most, they were expecting a written test- especially Hermione-but this!?

"Unfortunately for you, the few hours will fell like two weeks to you," continued their professor-smirking, "while in there, you are to rely on your partner for survival. And don't complain about your safety- I will be on guard the whole time."

"But that's preposterous!" yelled an indignant Malfoy, "wait till I tell my father about this! We are supposed to learn magic-not be barbarians!"

"Yeah!" added another boy, "we're wizards-not Muggles!"

Completely –and successfully –ignoring them, Edward continued, "Before you even think that this is tough, my teacher left my brother and me on an island with a knife, no alchemy and a colleague of hers to terrorize us for a month. And we were both 9 and 8. Be glad that your test is at least that simple. However, as I said if you think this kind of thing is beneath you, leave."

That took care of the complainers. Harry and the others meanwhile, couldn't help thinking that their professor's teacher must have been merciless to do that to children-only if they knew…

"Those of you who want to change into more comfortable clothes do so now," said Ed. None of them moved since they were all wearing pants and shirt-no robes. Seeing this, Ed said;

"Good. The real objective of this test is to find the meaning of All Is One, One Is All before the time limit is over. When its time for you to get out, anyone of your professors will come and get you-any complaints?"

"We don't want to be paired up with Slytherins!" shouted a Gryffindor.

"We don't want to be with you either!" shouted a Slytherin.

The students went at this for a while. Name calling, Jeering, threats-it made Edward's already non-existent patience evaporate. Just as A Slytherin looked as if she was going to strangle a Gryffindor, he snapped;

"ENOUGH!" shouted Edward. None of them had heard the professor shout before- it made them feel very, very small…

"I've heard of this stupid house rivalry of yours, but this is just ridiculous! Will you runts just shut up and suck it up!" he ranted, "If you really hate it, then get out of here and don't come back! Understood?"

All of the students including Malfoy nodded. It was hard to retaliate when Ed was in a temper…

"Brats…" sighed Edward,"'Remember, those of you who do not get the meaning of All Is One, One Is All will fail and not get a second chance. Those pairs who do not work together will be disqualified, got it? And the daggers I gave you are real. If you hurt another student with it-I will personally see to it that you are expelled."

After that, not even a peep of protest could be heard by the students. Hermione, though, was petrified. She hadn't had any idea of the answer to the riddle! This was going to be bad!

Harry and Ron meanwhile, were wondering about their fates being paired up with Crabbe and Malfoy. Not to say that Malfoy wasn't thinking the same thing- he detested Harry. Crabbe was too stupid to think anything though…

"Since we're all settled come with me," said Ed. "Before I forget, eyes will be on you at all times. That means, if you get the answer from another team, cheat or injure a student any way, you fail."

With that, Edward deposited the students at their pre-assigned stations. Then, he wished them all luck and started the countdown.

"Alright, in 3, 2, 1…Go!"

The test had begun! Students entered the barrier, not knowing what they would find.

Edward grinned wearily and made his way back to Hagrid's cabin to wait for the fourth year Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs. With the pocket dimension, it didn't matter when the students entered-they would all spend the same amount of time in there.

"Quite a crude method, don't you think?" said a sneering Snape coming behind from Edward.

"Its fun tough- makes the students work together and ignore that damned rivalry of theirs…" replied an unsurprised and bemused Edward.

"Mark my words," said Snape, "they won't last long. Their rivalry is more than just skin deep. It's been going on for generations."

"I don't know about that," replied Ed, "why don't you just wait and see?"

"Hmph," was all Snape would say before he walked off.

"Joy…" muttered Ed as he went towards the newly arrived students, "Oh, Joy..."

#*#

_Back at the Elric residence….._

_ In the kitchen of their home, Winry as thinking about Ed's letter while making an apple pie. The school sounded fun and she was quite curious about it. Maes was in his room taking a nap right now, so everything was quite peaceful- until Winry heard a knock at the door…_

_"I'm coming!" she called out-wondering who had come to call._

_ Opening the door, she got a big-and pleasant surprise-in front of her were Al, May(and her panda),Lan Fan and Ling!_

_"Hey there Winry!" said Al, 'Sorry for coming unannounced-'_

_ Before he could continue, Winry threw her arms around her brother-in-law. She had missed Al- and the others- so much! _

_"Al!" she cried, "What are you doing here? And can Ling even leave the palace?"_

_"Well," he began, "we heard about Ed and Ling had some legal business to do so-"_

_"We're all going to visit him!" continued May._

_"So, you wanna come?" asked Ling who was already making his way towards the kitchen- some things never changed…_

_"Really?" said Winry, ushering all of them in, "But what did the General say about all this?"_

_"Everything's been accounted for-so don't worry. We only came to see if you wanted to come."_

_ Winry thought about it. She really wanted to see Ed, but could she handle coming back after that? Before she could continue her thoughts, a sleepy eyed Maes walked into the living room._

_"Mummy," he said, "I want Daddy…"_

_ Al picked his nephew up and looked at Winry._

_"I guess we're going then!" she replied._

_"Great!" Ling called out from the kitchen, "then we leave in a week!"_

_ #*# _

**At long last, my exams are over and this chapter is done. (I made it longer than usual and you're welcome!)**

**Again I must say I own nothing and must be satisfied with only having the plot of this story to my name….**

**A Big Round of Applause to MCat for the wonderful editing! WOHHOOO!**

**Oh well, time to hibernate for a century or so…**

**PS. Review and like please! **


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